CAITLYN JENNER will be allowed to keep her Olympic gold medal despite transitioning, it has been confirmed.

Caitlyn after winning the Olympic gold medal and on the cover of Vanity Fair

This week, a shocking petition was launched urging the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to revoke Caitlyn Jenner's Olympic gold medal on the grounds that she was in violation of official rules by being transgender.

But the IOC have confirmed that although Caitlyn competed as a man, it will have no bearing on her Olympian status.

Mark Adams, IOC's communications director, told The Independent: "Bruce Jenner won his gold medal at the 1976 Olympic Games and there is no issue for the IOC."

The 65-year-old former athlete won the gold medal for at the men's decathlon event in the 1976 Montreal Olympics, setting a world record that was not beaten until 1980.

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Caitlyn celebrating winning gold at the men's decathlon during the Montreal Olympics

Caitlyn was once lauded as the "World's Greatest Athlete".

Meanwhile it's not all good news on the sporting front, as Caitlyn's golfing handicap has been voided since she announced her new identity.

Her scores will not be recognised by the US Golf Association, as women are marked differently than men in the sport, meaning she will have to start from scratch.

"I’m not doing this so I can hit it off the women’s tee," Caitlyn joked during her recent interview with Vanity Fair.

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The petition is calling for Caitlyn's medal to be revoked because she always identified as female

Starring on the cover of the magazine earlier this week, the reality star introduced herself to the world as Caitlyn for the first time and opened up about how she had always identified as female.

Despite being widely congratulated for her courage, an online petition was launched on Change.org, titled "Revoke Caitlyn Jenner's Olympic medals".

Created by Jennifer Bradford from the US, it claimed that Caitlyn was "in violation of committee rules" and urged "Ms. Jenner to support the transgender community by giving up the medals earned by competing against the wrong gender".

Written as an open letter to the Olympic Committee, the petition reads: "It has recently come to light that gold medalist Bruce Jenner is in fact transgender, and therefore, identifies as a woman.

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Caitlyn introduced herself to the world in her first shoot as a woman earlier this week

"However, this creates somewhat of a problem as Ms. Jenner (as talented as she is) claims that she has always believed herself to be truly female, and therefore, was in violation of committee rules regarding women competing in men’s sports and vice versa."

"It is only fair to all involved that women receive their credit as champions of the Decathalon and that the men racing Ms. Jenner are not expected to compete with a superior, streamlined being such as herself.

"We urge Ms. Jenner to support the transgender community by giving up the medals earned by competing against the wrong gender #givebackthegold."

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Behind the scenes at Caitlyn's Vanity Fair shoot

Speaking during her Annie Leibovitz shoot with the glossy magazine, Caitlyn reflected on her Olympic success.

"That was a good day," she said as she touched her gold medal during the interview. "But the last couple of days were better.

"I was probably at the [Olympic] Games because I was running away a lot of things – I don't want to diminish that accomplishment.

She added: "This shoot was about my life and who I am as a person. It’s not about the fanfare, it’s not about people cheering in the stadium, it's not about going down the street and everybody giving you ‘that a boy, Bruce,’ pat on the back, O.K. This is about your life."